Automation home page
Moeller home page
xStart
Efergy
XC series modular PLCs
RMQ-Titan
Smartwire
Logic control
RS & Moeller brochure
Programming with easySoft - Basic logic implementation

Case studies

Moeller helps Mono to control the munchers!
Easy relays make blasting safer for Tarmac
Moeller 'Rasuls Up' a solution
Relay keeps an eye on the dough
The Ecotech Centre in Swaffham turns to Moeller's easy control relay
Taking the lead in lead monitoring
Mass finishing technology: Control and operation with MFD-Titan and easy800
Precision sharpening with MFD-Titan

  Relay keeps an eye on the dough

A recent application in the food processing industry has provided a graphic and effective demonstration of the capabilities of Moeller's Easy 800 relay. Keeping an eye on dough is not as easy as it sounds!

Rtech, a specialist equipment manufacturer for the food industry, set Moeller Electric a challenge when it was having difficulties finding the right hardware to control a dough cutting machine. The new machine presented numerous design challenges, one of which was to ensure that the cuts of dough produced were consistent in length.

Rtech tried a number of different products to count the pulses generated by an encoder. However all those tested were not up to the job. It proved impossible to make accurate adjustments to the required set count value leading to erratic cut lengths and co-ordination problems with the conveyor. Rtech needed a solution that could give it enough processing power to cope with the number of pulses.

The solution came in the form of the Easy 800 relay from Moeller. This offered the functionality to cope with high-speed counting, thanks to its 32-bit processing power. Pulses from the encoder are fed to two of the four high-speed count inputs on the EASY 800. The set value for the high-speed counters can be adjusted externally via potentiometers that are directly connected to two extremely accurate 10-bit analogue inputs. Using this method, both the cut length and the travel distance of the conveyor can be set independently and easily by the operator.

Using the Easy 800's arithmetic function blocks, both analogue inputs are scaled and converted to a more recognisable customer-defined value. The 8A relay outputs are directly connected to solenoids and motor contactors to ensure reliable switching of the machine.

“We were looking for a straightforward solution that gave the operator the ability to remotely adjust the cut length without having to go to the machine,” explains John Evans, design engineer at Rtech. “When the dough is produced it can shrink in size so the cut length has to be adjusted. The Easy 800, connected to a potentiometer, offers the ideal solution by allowing the operator to adjust the cut length remotely.”

© RS Components Ltd. Birchington Road, Corby, Northants, NN17 9RS, UK
For general enquiries: 03457 201201 (standard rate line)